Successful treatment of social anxiety disorder changes brain structures that are involved in processing and regulating emotions, a study conducted by researchers from the University of Zurich, Zurich University Hospital and the University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich suggests.

Around one in ten people are affected by social anxiety disorder during their lifetime. Social anxiety disorder is defined as when fears and anxiety in social situations significantly impair everyday life and cause intense suffering. Talking in front of a larger group can be one typical feared situation.

The study investigated structural brain changes in patients suffering from social anxiety disorder after a specific ten-week course of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Social Anxiety Disorder

In patients suffering from social anxiety disorder, the regulation of excessive anxiety by frontal and lateral brain areas is impaired. Strategies aimed at regulating emotions should restore the balance between cortical and subcortical brain areas.

These strategies are practised in cognitive behavioral therapy, a central therapy for social anxiety disorder. The study from Zurich investigated structural brain changes in patients suffering from social anxiety disorder after a specific ten-week course of CBT.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

The more successful the treatment, the more pronounced the brain changes. The research group was also able to demonstrate that brain areas involved in processing emotions were more interconnected after the treatment.

Significant volume reduction, pre- to post-treatment, was observed in the left inferior parietal cortex. There was also a positive partial correlation between treatment success, as evidenced by reductions in the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, and reductions in cortical volume in the bilateral dorsomedial prefrontal cortex.

In cognitive behavioral group therapy, patients learn and apply new strategies aimed at dealing with social anxiety disorder. Based on specific examples, the group discusses explanatory models and identifies starting points for changes. Through self-observation, role plays or video recordings, alternative viewpoints can be developed.